Iterations of a Butterfly
by DemonKittyAngel
Summary: In Buddhism, reincarnation is based on Karma. In Luna's case, it's based on a messy haired boy who accidentally mastered death. With infinite lifetimes, she decides to make the most of it. Between magic, aliens, and superheroes, there's always new creatures to discover and worlds to explore. Silly premise treated seriously. AU/AD, time travel, all the tropes, MoD!Harry, Bamf!Luna
1. 7 The Hufflepuff

_I own nothing._

 _Hello out there! Just letting people know I'm alive. This is something that's been kicking around for a while so, I thought I'd start posting._

 _This is Luna reborn over and over in different worlds and timelines. It will feature a number of AUs and crossovers._

 _ **Important:** Before I get spammed for Luna being out of character, it will get there. My first draft started with same old Luna just accepting what was happening but, I thought it would be more interesting to have a fully sane, close minded Luna come to terms with her situation and lose her sanity later._

 _This will not have consistent updates - it's really more of an 'as it comes to me' project. That said, Harry Potter canon will be chapter 16._

* * *

The Hufflepuff

Luna Lovegood is rather surprised by the boy who sits himself across her.

It's been two weeks since she started Hogwarts and while she gets along well with her housemates, she's felt no need to make friends yet alone reach out to other houses. She supposes it could be the Hufflepuff's friendly nature but, if that's the case, she'll simply turn him away and let him know that it's not very polite to assume that she is in need of friends simply because she prefers to do her homework in peace.

"Hey Luna." he greets with entirely too much familiarity.

She closes her book with a soft thump that draws his attention.

She levels him with a deadpan stare and says, "I'd appreciate you not acting like we're friends. I don't know who told you my name or why you want to talk to me, but it's not appreciated. I don't need friends and I don't need some Hufflepuff busybody wasting my time."

He blinks and seems completely taken aback. He stares at her taking in her neat ponytail, her crisp uniform, and even examines her boring, black, messenger bag.

"Er, uh, this has never happened before. Well, of course it's never happened before..." he trails off and seems to be searching for the right words. Luna hopes he'll get on with it. She has an herbology essay to complete and isn't fond of distractions.

"I'm Harry Potter." he says and sticks a hand out for her to shake.

Harry Potter? As in the Boy-Who-Lived? Luna is now very confused. Yes, the boy is a Hufflepuff, but surely he has a great number of friends and admirers. Why would he seeks out a first-year Ravenclaw he's never even met?

She shakes his hand with a large dose of suspicion. Something feels very wrong.

"This may seem a bit strange, but, um, we're old friends. Well, at least, you're my old friend."

She raises an eyebrow at him that clearly questions his sanity. How could she be old friends with someone she's never even met?

"To see the day Luna Lovegood looks at me like I'm insane..." he mumbles.

She arches her eyebrow higher.

"Well, it's like this. We keep meeting up in different lifetimes. Only, it's out of order. This is my seventh life and apparently, your first."

Luna gives him a flat stare. Lifetimes? Is he seriously talking about reincarnation?

"What proof could you possibly give me to prove such a ridiculous claim?"

"Er, I uh, don't really have proof. You always seem to know more than me so I never really considered how you met me the first time."

Well she's a Ravenclaw and he's just a Hufflepuff. If this is true (which she highly doubts) it's no surprise that she would know more than him.

"So you're going to make ridiculous claims about being old friends from previous lifetimes without any proof? Go back to Hufflepuff. I'm a Ravenclaw and I'm not buying into your ridiculous hoax."

"It's not a hoax. You just haven't looped yet!" he exclaims only to be shushed by Madam Pince. He flinches and tries to make himself smaller in his chair. Clearly he's been kicked out of here before.

He carries on in a harried whisper. "Look, I know it's pretty out there, but it's just like all the creatures you and your dad believe in. Just because they can't be seen, doesn't mean it's not there."

"I don't believe in any of the silly creatures my dad makes up. He writes that ridiculous magazine and searches for things that aren't there. I know he's mad but he's my father and I won't have you making fun of him for it."

He looks completely taken aback and Luna vaguely wonders if this is the first lifetime that she hasn't believed in the make believe creatures her father insists are real before pushing the thought from her mind. Of course they aren't real and neither is this ridiculous idea of lifetimes and looping.

"If you don't mind, I'd like to return to my homework."

"Right. I um, right. I'll just, go then. Hey um, Luna? Find me in your next life, ok? Even if we aren't friends now, we're going to be. And I really don't want to spend a lifetime with you hating me."

She gives him a long stare before nodding. "I don't hate you." she says because really, she doesn't. She's annoyed and doesn't believe him but he seems so very sincere and he seems truly relieved at her words.

She doesn't think they'll ever meet again, but Luna makes a mental note that if she ever has a second lifetime, she'll get answers out of him. It's bound to be an interesting story, after all.


	2. 10 Lifetimes

_Note: Chapter titles are done by what lifetime Harry is on. We're following Luna in order._

* * *

Lifetimes

Luna is three when she starts understanding that her memory is much longer than it should be. She remembers being big like Mama and Papa but she knows she never has been.

She's four when she remembers a confused boy with green eyes, messy black hair, and a yellow tie telling her something about lifetimes.

When she's six, she understands that her mother will soon have an accident that will put her in a coma. She's not sure if it's a past life or if she's remembering the future, but she never truly forgets the Hufflepuff boy from many years ago. Or is it a few years from now?

Her mother dies this time.

Luna thought she could fix it. She hung out in her mother's lab everyday so she could try and stop it from happening. Instead of visiting her mother at St. Mungos, she now visits her grave.

Luna is seven and her father has thrown himself into his hunts for imaginary creatures. Or are they?

In her previous life, Luna had been so dismissive of her father's flights of fancy in favor of becoming a healer and trying to help her mother. (And it _must_ be different lifetimes because this time things have changed.) This lifetime, she listens with rapt attention. People don't believe in reincarnation and multiple lifetimes, but she's living it. Who's to say that her father doesn't see more creatures than most?

This is magic and _anything_ is possible.

She sits on her father's lap for hours and postulates about where these creatures might be found. He holds her close and Luna feels a small part of herself break. In her last life, she hadn't listened to him and by the time she was fifteen, they rarely spoke at all. She feels ashamed of herself. He must have been so terribly lonely and as much as these stories may be a distraction from losing her mother, they could very well be true.

She listens with wonder and curiosity and can't wait to get to Hogwarts because the boy said to find him in the next life so he could explain things. Maybe he's seen a crumple-horned snorkack! There's so many things to know and to see because anything is possible.

Lifetimes! She has lifetimes!

She misses her mother terribly but she can get it right next time. For now, all she wants is to cuddle up with her Papa and hear fantastic stories about undiscovered creatures.

She's full of energy her entire trip to Hogwarts and barely contains herself from looking for the messy haired boy (will his hair still be messy?) on the train because he's a Hufflepuff and probably surrounded by lots of friends. She needs to talk to him in private.

As soon as she's seated at the Ravenclaw table (cheered up by the hat's comment of 'another one of you'), she's scouring the Hufflepuff table up and down trying to find him. She scowls. She's looked at every student as best she can with the Gryffindor table between them, but she just can't find him!

She turns back to her food, scowling, before noticing the second year across from her. He's smiling in amusement and wearing Ravenclaw robes. "You!" she exclaims and his smile widens.

"Yes, me. Good to see you Luna." There's a warmth in his eyes that feels like it's reserved just for her and her heart melts.

"You owe me explanations." She states, pointing her fork sharply at him.

He blinks. "Is it second life already? Huh, good thing I'm in Ravenclaw." She ignores the change in house (how often does he change houses?) because she's sure she can get all her answers later.

"What lifetime are you on?"

"My tenth. You first met me during my seventh. I'm surprised these lives ended up so close together. We're normally much more mixed up."

Luna is dying of curiosity to hear all about it but it will have to wait. She stomps down on her nervous energy all the way through the feast, the speech, being shown to Ravenclaw tower, and manages to stay even through the prefect's welcome.

As soon as her year mates bustle off to claim beds, Luna nearly skips to the window seat 'messy boy' has staked as his own. She plops down across from him and, in a sure tone that is both demand and question, states: "Lifetimes."

He grins at her with that same sparkle she knows is just for her before his expression turns sheepish. "Yes, well, um..." He rubs the back of his neck and glances out the window. "I'm, uh, sorry?"

Luna raises an elegant eyebrow at him and waits patiently for him to gather his thoughts. She'll get her answers and she has plenty of time in which to do so.

"So, yeah. Lifetimes. That would be my fault. You see, in my first lifetime, I _kinda_ made myself immortal." He looks so sheepish and embarrassed Luna can do nothing but meet his nervous gaze with a deadpan stare. He achieves immortality, the dream of thousands throughout all of time, and he talks about it like– "It was an accident! Don't give me that look."

"I doubt many in your position would be embarrassed by surpassing the laws of nature."

He frowns and reaches out - probably to muss her hair or some other familiar gesture - before awkwardly placing his hand in his lap. "Yes, well. I didn't exactly set out to 'surpass the laws of nature'. That's not who I am."

He looks out the window again with a slightly solemn expression. It's like an old pain that's dulled with time but not quite enough. Not as gone as one might think. Luna wonders if his immortality has always been in lifetimes or if he perhaps lived far longer than a man should, once. Luna doesn't know enough but that's ok. She has lifetimes to find out.

He shakes off his melancholy and offers her an attempt at a wry grin. "You'll find a lot of my life is just the craziest luck. In my first lifetime, I accidently gathered a few items together that made me immortal. Have you heard of the Deathly Hallows?"

Luna scrunches her brow in frustration. It sounds ever so vaguely familiar but she can't place it.

"How about the tale of The Three Brothers?"

She perks up in interest. Her father has told her that story several times but she was always more interested in the magical creatures he talked about rather than the fairytales every child was told.

"Yeah, so, that was real. The trick to becoming Master of Death was to gather all the items, but not want their power. In fact, just minutes after I had the last Hallow in my possession, I broke it and threw it off a cliff."

Luna's mouth is gaping. What waste! What potential! And people call her father mad!?

Her mind is buzzing at the possibilities that the Hallows being real present and this fool simply destroyed one and threw it off a cliff! How was he ever allowed into Ravenclaw? None of them would have _possibly_ let such a research opportunity go!

"It was a long time ago, ok? What matters is that I didn't want the power and that's why death approved of me."

It occurs to Luna that he just might be the most backwards and fitting person to have power over a force of the universe. She'll question him later on the utter insanity that must have gripped him during his first life. For right now, "Where do I come into this?"

He's back to rubbing his neck and looking sheepish and somehow she knows this is all his fault before he even opens his mouth.

"That's where my apology comes in. You see, in your last lifetime, when you told me to go away, I ended up really lonely. I can generally put it aside that I've lived over and over again and that I'm far older than any 'friends' I make but, having you there always made things better. I would always run into you at some point and you understood. So, when I didn't have you to turn to for an entire lifetime, I was isolated. When I finally died, I expressed how I'd missed your friendship and you knowing who I was and so, Death made it so."

"So I have multiple lifetimes because you asked for me to, but you only asked because it had already happened. Very Phoenix and the flame." She muses to herself. From his sheepish smile that reads more apology than regret, Luna resigns herself to just rolling with it. Between this and his accidental immortality, it seems his life (or perhaps existence may be the more accurate word) is a series of ridiculous circumstances and coincidences.

She has so many questions about the lives he's lived and the lives she's yet to live but they can wait. Right now, there's just one more thing she needs to know. "May I have your name?"

He blinks in surprise for a moment before bursting out in laughter.

"Right, right. It's just so strange for you not to know. Sorry." He attempts to appease her.

She huffs and crosses her arms. She's just trying to be polite and apparently it's the funniest thing he's ever heard. She understands in a small way why that's so strange for him, but still, rude.

"Sorry, just... yeah." He pulls together his composure and holds out his hand. "My name is Harry Potter. I think this will be the start of a long and fruitful friendship."

"Luna Lovegood. I hope this will be a beautiful continuation."

It's awkward in concept that she's been his friend far longer than he's been hers, but the radiant smile he gives her assures her she's said just the right thing.

They part ways for the night and promise to speak again the next day.

For the next few weeks, Luna is practically his shadow peppering him with questions about past lives, both his and hers, which are almost always sidestepped if not completely redirected. He's so masterful about it she concludes he must have been a Slytherin at some point. He politely concedes that the hat has always wanted to put him there.

She's well aware that he didn't say he actually had been a Slytherin but, he's too good at this for it not to have happened.

On the rare times he answers, the crumbs he offers are fascinating and frustrating in equal measure.

They don't always end up in Hogwarts and even when they do, things can be vastly different. Sometimes there's no magic at all and others there are forces outside of magic at work. He's yet to encounter a world with different magic but according to Luna (and referring to her future self as a separate entity with the same name gives her much less of a headache), those worlds are out there.

They always meet at some point and exchange what lifetime they're on. The highest he's seen is Luna on life seventy-six but, he supposes this is rather infinite.

They don't always stay close but they almost always stay in touch. Often they're friends, never have they dated, and (according to Luna) they've only been on opposite sides of a conflict a handful of times. That was from the Luna on her seventy-sixth life but, Harry has yet to experience such a conflict.

Luna decides then and there that just to make sure this life is different she is going to date him. They're only eleven and twelve right now, but by the time she's ready for OWLs, they _will_ be dating.

Luna takes the time to get to know her year mates, unlike her last life. She had been so focused on her goals that, while she was cordial with her roommates, she hadn't had any real friends. It's both natural and not being friends with a group of eleven year old girls. In many ways it feels like she's playing with children and in others it feels so natural because she's the same age. She wonders how Harry deals with it being a great deal older than herself.

She asks him once why the name 'Harry Potter' seems familiar to her despite them not being friends in her last life.

He explains that in a few lives, like his first, there's a dark lord and a prophecy and he ends up very famous. His seventh life was one of those and even if she hadn't paid attention, it was doubtless that she had heard some of the gossip.

She demands stories of what he did in that life since they've already been through it so there can't be any spoilers. He heaves a great sigh, thinks about it, and then makes her a deal. He'll write it down for her if she'll stop asking about the rest of his lives. She agrees.

She asks him why he's in Ravenclaw this time and he says his goal is to truly understand magic. He hasn't had magic since she last saw him and while the practical comes naturally to him (leaving him envied by even the older students), he doesn't remember the theory. He wants to take this life, without prophecies or fame, to study just how magic works and how it came to be.

Luna feels her heart skip a beat and thinks she might truly fall for him.

She receives the story of his seventh life as a Christmas present. He promises to charm it when she gets back to school so that only she can read it but, in the meantime, she could share it with her father if she wants.

Luna doesn't share. It's a precious tale that she could have been part of and in a small way, it feels like she _has_ to know because they know all of each other's lifetimes. It's penance in the form of a delightful story of friendship, loyalty, and how love and tolerance changed the political world. The dark lord was defeated in secret and left as a long term rumor; although, Harry never specifies how.

She feels like she's cheated him in some way. It seems like a good life, but she's so sure that there are things he's left out because they don't have the closeness that he's used to.

She's going to change that.

This lifetime, she's going to stick to him like glue and he can quite simply get over it. She longs for the closeness of friends who barely need words and she can see it in him, always quickly hidden and only out of the corner of her eye, how he's saddened by how much he has to explain because he's so used to her _knowing_.

She comes back from the holidays and he shows her the Come-and-Go room. It's fascinating. He says it's a side project of his to figure out just how it works. He doesn't think he can replicate it since he's never been a Master of Transfiguration, but, perhaps another life.

He asks her to stand in the middle of a ritual circle holding the manuscript and Luna complies. She wants to ask why he doesn't use any number of privacy spells but the magic he's working is so new and enchanting - Luna can do nothing but trust him and watch.

It's short with a sharp word that Luna suspects means 'privacy' or some such and with a small flash of light (not enough to be blinding), Luna can feel a tug in her fingertips and her magical core that now seem tethered to the story. It tingles in the oddest way and she wonders if this is what a wrackspurt infestation would feel like.

She steps out of the circle and Harry explains that they had created this spell together. It ties whatever the person is holding to their fingerprints and their magical core.

It is a cross between a notice-me-not, a fidelius, and a conglomeration of privacy spells. If someone did not know of the manuscript before this, they never will now. It cannot be spoken of (even with veritaserum), cannot be picked out of her mind with legilimency, and anyone who tries to look at it will not be able to focus.

It's brilliant and Luna decides that holding onto her excitement of finding out how she'll do it is more important than her disappointment that Harry won't simply tell her. She'll find out personally, after all. However, she can't shake that niggling worry that asks _why_ they needed such heavy security. She doesn't ask - she knows by now which questions are bound to get no answer.

She does point out that it seems a rather extreme level of secrecy for a story, but Harry just smiles and says that he knew she'd enjoy the magic.

Luna desperately wishes she wasn't so pale because she sees the mirth dancing in his eyes at her blush.

For her birthday, Harry tells her the truth of the crumple-horned snorkack and Luna is smitten.

She'll never find one because they don't exist in this world. It's actually a second name for a creature she won't encounter until her thirteenth life in a very different world. Some of the creatures her father speaks of can be found here and others have only been glimpsed through cracks in the dimensions. At least, according to Luna. Harry tends to not adventure looking for these creatures.

Luna really hopes that he isn't set on the whole 'not dating' thing because she's crushing on him already and it feels like it can only grow.

It's in her third year that Luna comes across Harry's year mates ribbing him for spending all his time with a girl the year below him.

"Is she your girlfriend?" Terry Boot playfully asks.

Harry opens his mouth to deny it but Luna jumps in before he can say anything to the opposite effect. Merlin forbid he says she's like a sister! No one will ever take her seriously!

"We're going to get married." She declares. The fourth years are completely taken aback by her assurance and sincerity and Harry - unshakable, calm, laid-back Harry - is completely gob smacked. She smiles at him, pleased at his reaction and, holding back her laughter, places her hand in the crook of his elbow. "Shouldn't we be going, dear?"

He acts on instinct; appropriately adjusting his stance so that she's hanging on his arm and, like a true gentleman, starts guiding her down the hallway with a brief 'good-bye' to his friends.

They're several halls down when Harry leads her into an empty classroom and steps away from her. "What was that?"

He's a little angry and still a lot bewildered but not put off. Luna takes it as a small victory.

"Exactly what I said. We're getting married in this life." She takes a seat on an old desk after wiping away some dust and watches him pinch the bridge of his nose in frustration. It's amusing and Luna tries to keep her smile cheerful and not indulgent.

"Luna, you're my best friend and I love you form the bottom of my heart, but not in that way."

"Why not? In all your many, many lifetimes, why can't we have one where we get married? Where we date?" She challenges. She knows she'll have to wear him down, little by little. But, in the end, she'll win. It's just going to take time and that's one thing Luna is certain she has.

"Luna, I just -" He searches for a concrete reason but falls short. "That's just not how it works, ok Luna? We don't get romantically involved."

"Well this time we do. Look, Harry," she cuts him off before he can voice further protests. "I'm already falling for you. Hard. I have been for a long time. I'm not saying we have to get married now, but give it a chance. You're already my best friend and I'd love to have you as so much more."

He looks lost standing in the middle of a dust covered classroom and Luna has never seen him so shaken. Social situations have always been his weak point and Luna has just thrown him a curveball he never expected.

"Just think about it, ok?" She gets up, gives him a small kiss on the cheek (one that says she'll still stand by him even if he says no), and leaves him to his thoughts.

He avoids her most of the next week but when he slides into the seat across from her in the library, so reminiscent and yet different from a lifetime ago, he seems worn and tired in a way she's never seen before. She thinks that, underneath it all, he probably feels the true age of his soul despite being fourteen.

He slumps weakly and runs his hand through his thick hair. "Hey Luna. You always know how to throw me for a loop, don't you?"

"I certainly wouldn't want our lifetimes to get boring."

His eyes call her a little shit and she politely smiles back.

He sighs and runs his hand through his hair again. "I don't make any promises, but we can try. Dating. I just don't know if I can feel that way about you. So often you're my best friend or nearly my sister. I've never even thought of you in a romantic way."

That's ok. Luna knew all along that this wasn't familiar territory for him and that it might be awkward. But she's determined and she knows (at least in a small way) that she's taking advantage of Harry's compulsion to do nearly anything for her. In this life, she thinks it might be a bit stronger because it's her first loop and he feels responsible.

She doesn't feel any resentment but who's to say what happens in further lifetimes? He's met her seventy-four lifetimes from now and a great many things can happen in a single life.

Reaching across the table, she takes his hand and squeezes it gently. "We can date in a couple years. I don't turn fourteen for a month and we don't have to start right away. I really am serious about marrying you though. Best friends marry each other all the time and I'm not leaving you alone this lifetime."

He turns his hand over and squeezes back lightly.

They don't talk about it any further for the rest of the year and things continue more or less as they were. They exchange letters over the summer and Luna signs with a heart next to her name.

She knows she's pressuring him, but she's determined.

She's invited to his fifteenth birthday and begs her father to enchant the shimmering night sky on her dress to simulate a meteor shower. She takes extra care braiding her hair into a crown and even adds a dash of make-up.

A bit over done for a best friend's birthday? Maybe. But she wants harry to view her as a woman and what girl doesn't want her crush to notice her?

They arrive ten minutes early and while her father volunteers to help with any last minute preparations, Luna flounces into the wide backyard of Potter Manner eager to show off her dress to her future husband.

He'll get over his reluctance.

He greets her a touch awkwardly but more guests arrive and the barbeque is a hit. Some people start leaving around seven but for those who want to stay, the Marauders have partnered with the Weasley twins to create a fireworks display that's bound to be a show stopper.

Shortly before the fireworks, Harry gently takes her by the elbow and guides her to a small gazebo behind a spattering of trees. They'll be able to see most of the fireworks, but Luna knows that's not important right now.

She stands in the middle, waiting, as he leans out in the direction of the party. It's a long, quiet moment as she waits for him to gather his thoughts.

"You know I don't always have parents?"

It's not how she expected him to break the silence.

"This is my fourth lifetime with them and it always feels unreal. I wake up some days and, before I open my eyes, I feel like I'm going to be back in my cupboard, just wishing that I had parents who loved me and would take me away from there."

She approaches cautiously and puts a hand gently on his shoulder. There are so many distressing pieces about his first life in that statement that she doesn't know where to start.

"I feel like it's a dream a lot of the time. I mean, every orphan wishes they had that perfect life with their parents. And here I am. A Manner, several properties elsewhere, house-elves to do the chores, a fortune I'm going to inherit, exuberant godfathers who make elaborate firework displays just for my birthday." He gestures absently towards the still empty sky. "It feels too good to be real."

Luna almost squeezes his shoulder in an attempt at comfort but stops at his next words.

"You know it's easier - in the more chaotic worlds. It's not exactly pleasant but I just feel more... there. More present. In these worlds, the calm ones, I sometimes feel like I'm floating... just waiting for someone to drop the other shoe so that I have something to fight against.

"I know. I know that's not right and I shouldn't look at things that way, but even all these lifetimes later, I can't help feeling that life isn't this kind. You have to fight for your happy ending."

She does squeeze his shoulder when he pauses this time. He makes no acknowledgment, just carries on.

"That's not even what I wanted to talk about. Luna, I," he turns to look at her and they hear the streak of the first firework launching completely unwelcome and distracting. They both shoot an annoyed glance in that direction and when their eyes catch, they can't help chuckling.

Harry draws his composure back and Luna thinks he's most like a politician at these moments.

"Luna, I don't know where I can really take this. Even when I get married to other people, it's never quite real because there's so much I can't say. So much they'll never understand. This may be early on for you, but we've been through so much together."

He gives her a long stare and Luna can feel her heart racing behind her ears. This is it.

"Luna Lovegood, it would be my honor to share the entirety of this lifetime with you. There is no one I've known so accepting of the bizarre and unusual and so nonjudgmental of actions people have or have not taken. You are a true child of magic even in worlds where there is none and have always been my cryptic guide. I only hope that this old, broken soul, with too many scars from lives long past, is good enough payment for the delight of your company."

Luna is beaming and she doesn't know if she can stop that damn tears in the corner of her eyes from spilling but the moment is perfect and she doesn't care. Harry has just asked her to spend her life with him and it's the happiest moment of two lifetimes. Screw being fourteen. She should damn well be old enough to get married right now!

Finally managing to unlock her lips from smiling, all she manages is, "The outside isn't so bad either."

He smiles at her fondly and pulls her into his arms with her enthusiastic help. They hold each other close to the background of screeches and explosions that they're still not watching. It's at least a minute later when they pull apart and Luna leans up to gently place her lips against his.

"Right. That's a bit, awkward." He offers a half smile in apology but Luna doesn't mind.

"You have time to get used to it."

"Yeah, I do." He smiles at her and they turn their attention to watch the tail end of the fireworks show. The eagle reading a book is a nice touch to end on and speaks of the obvious pride Harry's family has for him.

They meander back to the party bumping shoulders and trading smiles; holding hands the whole way.

When Harry announces that they want to get married (they'll wait until they both graduate of course), his parents exchange doubtful glances and her father seems completely shocked. He probably hasn't considered his little girl getting married at all yet alone so soon. It's fine. They can say that it's young love and won't last because Luna knows better. She knows better than anyone that time has very little meaning in this arrangement. Harry is on his tenth life and later on, this will be a very short moment in a very long existence.

She hopes to make it a memorable one.

Despite everyone's doubts, they get married two months after she graduates and they spend their life traveling the world. Harry studies ancient magic and becomes the foremost authority on pre-Merlin enchantments and Luna proves the existence of creatures her father always postulated but could never find. The fact the Harry knew where to look certainly helped things along.

They travel and have adventures well into their fifties when Harry decides he'd like to settle down for a while. He becomes the History of Magic professor at Hogwarts while Luna restarts the Quibbler with as many outrageous theories as she can find; sometimes about myths, sometimes government conspiracies – always a section on creatures not yet discovered.

They have no children and retire; writing memoirs of their adventures. When Harry publishes a couple of fictional works that _might_ be based on previous lifetimes, it's not like anyone would believe them if they told.

* * *

 _I am a review whore._

 _Reviews keep my attention on whatever project I'm working on and provide inspiration. This is a sporadic piece to start with, but encouragement equals motivation._

 _Criticisms, suggestions, kudos, and mehs are all welcomed._


	3. 25 UFOs

It's Luna's third birthday when she realizes something is missing. There is no magic to be found anywhere in this world and, with the glee only a toddler can hold, she revels in it.

Bedtime stories she thought had been familiar have been replaced with similar versions, unknown creatures have been replaced by _flying saucers_ , and she's American.

She grows up immersed in conspiracy theories and chemistry and wonder.

Magic was always a realm beyond the mundane, but Luna had never known just how much muggle society had to offer! She doesn't know whether magic exists in this world or even where to look in America, but she doesn't mind. There's so very much to learn about the muggle world.

And aliens.

Luna has never been so fascinated with any of the magical creatures that were so likely to exist - beings from other planets and galaxies who might see fit to visit them and compare societies? It's dazzling.

Her dad was visited once and Luna hopes that she will be, too.

It's in sixth grade that she makes a science project detailing why aliens have definitely visited. Her fellow students have always found her a bit strange, but that's fine. She _knows_ (in the way that only experience can give you knowledge) that the world extends far beyond what's right in front of you.

They start calling her Loony instead of Luna and that's fine. It's actually a bit amusing. Loony Lovegood has a nice ring to it and even though these children don't believe in the beyond, there are others, like her father, who _know_.

In seventh grade, the internet is up-and-coming and Luna and her father find online chat rooms where people discuss their encounters. She doesn't understand why it's called a chat room since it's clearly not a room at all, but supposes it's simply for visualization purposes and rolls with the terminology. The age of computers is just rising and she gets to grow alongside it.

It's so very, very exciting for someone who has never had _technology_ as a part of their life. Luna is fascinated and wonders if it would work alongside magic. She puts that as a project for another life and dives into understanding the different devices just as much as she picks apart her father's conspiracies.

Conspiracies get along with Presidents just as well as they did with Ministers, and with the ever changing political structure (and that's fascinating on its own), there's more than enough theories to write a book. Or two. Which her father does.

It's in high school that she finds herself truly missing Harry. Sixteen years since she's seen her husband and best friend and she has so many observations and ideas that she just wants to share with him - theories only someone with a Hogwarts education could understand. Every year she hopes to see him in her class or in the halls, but it's never so.

She tries not to despair - they always meet after all.

Or, well, they're supposed to.

She frowns and then shakes the thought forcefully from her head. She's been on a set pattern in the last two lives and that's why she expects to find him already. But not this time. She has a whole lifetime ahead of her and she's not done yet. There's a long time still for her to meet him and she needs to keep reminding herself that she's not alone.

Just like they're not alone in the universe.

She goes to college and receives degrees in Astronomy and Communications. She searches campus some days to find Harry, but still no luck. That's ok. It's a big world and just because she's American, doesn't mean he's not British and it may be a long time before they meet.

She gets a job searching the stars for alien communications and her father couldn't be more proud. When they go to conventions he always shows her off and after a couple years, people starts recognizing her without being introduced. She's ecstatic.

Recognition is not new to her (she and Harry and been quite renowned in her last life) but she loves the fringe science she's fallen into and to have people acknowledge her for trying to prove these crazy theories, rather than only after she's proven them, is a delight she's never experienced before. It's a shared faith and carrying these people's beliefs as she searches the stars gives her a sense of fulfillment and belonging she wouldn't change for anything.

She's twenty-seven and there's still no sign of Harry when she meets Rolf Scamander.

He's tan with dirty blonde hair and mischievous blue-green eyes - it takes one glance across a booth selling radish earrings and bottle cap necklaces for Luna's knees to turn to butter and her heart to race like it hasn't since her husband. She's doomed from the get-go and once she finds out his grandfather wrote 'Where the Government Hides the Aliens' (the bible of her and her father), she offers up a silent thanks to Death for allowing her this lifetime.

Rolf had joined the community against his parents' wishes but has always been exceptionally close to his grandfather. She's introduced and nearly faints when Ned Scamander compliments her work.

All she needs is to meet Harry and exchange life numbers and she can die happy.

Or maybe live the next fifty years with the gorgeous young man who just offered her a drink.

The convention ends and they unfortunately live in different states. His studies focus on planets that may be able to sustain human life for when it's time to colonize space and Luna wonders if she's receiving pre-karma and something is going to go very badly in a later life.

She's too happy to care.

They exchange emails frequently and since her project is shutting down in six months, they plan to be put on projects in the same general area. Luna is successfully recruited to study a black hole from an observatory in the same state and while they're not in the same city, they're far closer than before and are willing to make the trip.

They travel to the convention together that year and rather enthusiastically share a tent. They're not engaged, just dating, but Luna can't see herself ending up with anyone else and is fairly certain he agrees.

That's when the murder happens.

There's still two days left of the convention when the FBI sweep in and starts questioning everyone. It takes less than two hours for everyone to know what's going on. A man was dressed up as an alien, killed, and dumped in the desert two miles from here. This is the third convention where this has happened and is officially in the hands of the FBI as a serial killer and a case that crosses state lines.

Conspiracies and outlandish claims are rampant as the paranoid and anti-establishment advocates feel threatened by the strong government presence invading their sanctuary.

And that's how she finds Harry.

He's one of the FBI agents and trying to interview Matt Hudgins (who was abducted and then forced into silence by the government). She knows these people and knows that the investigation will go nowhere at this rate. As he turns back to his partner to discuss the lack of cooperation, Luna makes a decision.

Boldly walking up behind him with a wicked grin, she forcefully grabs his hand and pulls it into the air. "You can trust him!" She loudly proclaims and people slowly turn their attention to her and the FBI agent. "I can't vouch for any of the others, but I promise, this man is a good man who only wants to catch the murderer and has no ulterior motives."

She smiles up at Harry's completely gob smacked expression and mentally pats herself on the back. It's been years since she last put that expression on his face and it is no less satisfying in this life than the last.

"Hello Luna." he awkwardly states.

"Hello Harry." she beams.

"May I have my arm back?"

She looks up at his arm, back to his face, and answers, "Maybe. That depends entirely on whether you'll have coffee with me so we can catch up."

He gives a gentle smile full of affection. "I'd be glad to."

"Good." She releases his arm and welcomes Rolf as he slides his arms around her waist possessively. It's adorable how he thinks to be jealous of Harry (and considering they had been married, maybe there's a point) but Luna feels nothing but the fond contentedness of running into an old friend.

"Who's this Luna?" he speaks next to her ear and she smiles as it tickles. So cute.

"You remember that old friend I was telling you about? The one I didn't know how to get in touch with? This is him."

Rolf straightens and moves to stand more at her side instead of being draped over her but his one arm is still firmly around her waist, even as he extends the other to shake hands with Harry. "Rolf Scamander. Luna's fiancé. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Harry has a particular fondness in his eyes that can only mean he's known Rolf in a previous life and approves. "Nice to meet you. I'm Harry Evans, Luna's old friend."

Luna basks in amusement and completeness as she turns her head to face Rolf. "Fiancé? I don't recall you proposing. Is there something you've been meaning to ask me?"

He smiles down at her. "I've always thought it was rather obvious that I intend to spend the rest of my life with you. Although, if you want a grand gesture, I'm sure I can find something that wo-" She kisses him and feels like she's just proven the existence of moon frogs all over again.

Finding Harry and getting engaged to Rolf all in one day? Priceless.

All she needs is for a flying saucer to land and validate the existence of aliens and this will be the most perfect day for lifetimes. As it stands, it's still among her favorites.

After reassuring Rolf that they'll celebrate their engagement tonight, she leads Harry out to an RV that has been turned into a cafe and they take a picnic table as far to the side as they can. There's no one sitting directly next to them, but she's not worried about being overheard. Odd stories are quite accepted here.

"Harry Evans?" Luna prompts, taking a slow sip of her caramel frappuccino.

"Better than Harry Snape. Mom and James got divorced when I was four. I went with my mom and became an Evans. She remarried to her childhood friend, Severus Snape, when I was nine. It's been... interesting."

He blows on his plain black coffee and her lips twitch at the stereotypical drink.

"Snape as your step-father? That must be strange." She remembers the two of them being coworkers for three years before Snape had retired as headmaster. He'd been a remarkable man although he and Harry were never more than cordial.

He ducks his head and mumbles into his coffee, "It's even more awkward because I dated him in my last life."

Luna barely resists a spit take and forces herself to swallow before bursting into raucous laughter. "You.. used to... and now..." She chokes out between burst of laughter but she just can't finish. She doesn't even know if she has any way to make fun of this. The whole situation is some sort of cosmic irony completely at Harry's expense.

He balls up a napkin and throws it at her head. "Shut up. It's not as bad as the time you dated your own great grandfather."

Luna finally contains herself, eyes sparkling with mirth. "I date my own great grandfather? Well that's certainly going to be an interesting lifetime."

Harry hangs his head for a moment. "Shit. I haven't even asked what lifetime you're on."

"I'm on my third. Hello, love."

He flushes and it's adorable. She wonders if he feels awkward about having been married or if he's embarrassed for sharing information so early on. She doesn't mind either way. She has her best friend back and there's so much to catch up on.

He clears his throat and takes a sip of his coffee. "Right, um. So, I'm on life twenty-five, I'm part of the Behavioral Analysis Unit of the FBI, and I used to date my step-father. I think that sums up everything."

Luna smiles over her coffee and is content to just sit for the next few minutes, enjoying his presence.

Then, "What's it like having Snape as a father?"

He flushes and stares into his coffee. "It's... Don't tell anyone, but he's actually a better father than James." He ducks his head and tries to hide his face but he's blushing all the way to his ears and it's adorable. "I don't mean just in this lifetime, either. I mean that he really is a better father than James. And my mom is so happy with him. It's still really awkward but I look at how he fits into our lives and... I just can't imagine anyone fitting so well.

"I end up feeling kind of guilty because James is still around and I feel like I should support my 'real dad' but, Snape is everything I picture in a father in the way that James has never accomplished. He's been my mentor a couple times and almost like an uncle, but I honestly like him being my father best."

It's a sweet moment and Luna knows it took him a lot to confess to something like that. Harry has never been much of one to talk about his feelings and fifteen lifetimes hasn't seemed to change that. Still, she can't resist the urge to make fun of him.

"More than you like dating him?" she taunts and gives a chesire grin as he glares back at her.

"You know as well as I do that those are entirely different circumstances and it's happened to you before, too!" He declares before faltering. "Or, well, you will. Damn meeting out of order."

"Dating my own great-grandfather?"

"Among other things."

She arches an eyebrow curiously but knows he won't expand on the subject. How very intriguing.

Luna tells him about the Quibbler of this world (her father's blog) and her continued search for alien life. His eyes sparkle in amusement and mirth and it's enough to know that at some point, she _will_ meet an alien.

Or _be_ an alien. Anything's possible.

Harry's partner (Zacharius Smith, surprisingly) tracks him down half way through a tale of James and Sirius taking him water skiing for his thirteenth birthday.

Harry ashamedly apologizes to him, trades contact information, and promises to continue catching up with Luna, and returns to his hunt for the murderer. Luna isn't surprised that they forgot about it. When you have entire lifetimes to discuss, it feels like everything else is irrelevant. What's an hour or two when a year is just a drop in the bucket?

She imagines they get caught up in reminiscing and catching up rather often - she decides to make it a personal challenge to see how long she can distract him.

The murderer is caught (something about forcing the government to acknowledge that aliens are real) and Harry is whisked away from her after a single round of drinks involving Rolf and a rather sinister threat about his extensive knowledge on how to get away with murder should he ever hurt Luna. Rolf holds himself together surprisingly well and swears that he has no intention of ever doing such.

Luna smiles wryly at Harry acting like a protective father and as she walks him to his hotel room (with Rolf waiting in the lobby) she asks if the threat was completely necessary.

"More obligatory - Rolf is always good to you."

Luna beams at the ringing endorsement and is familiar enough with his subtle statements to realize this isn't the first time he's seen her marry Rolf. She has so many exciting lifetimes to look forward to!

Two years later, Harry is her best man at the wedding (and no, she doesn't care to find a 'maid of honor' or appease Rolf's best friend, Trent, as the 'true best man'.)

For the first lifetime, Luna has children. Two girls named for stars in the sky she and her husband study so hard.

Her oldest daughter, Bellatrix (and Harry had a coughing fit that he refuses to explain when she first informed him), has only just started high school when Luna is diagnosed with cancer.

Luna isn't used to being sick. Magic heals most diseases quickly but cancer has remained elusive even to them. Capella, in her second year of middle school, throws a fit yelling about how Luna wasn't allowed to leave.

Rolf is the supporting, loving husband who takes on as many responsibilities as he can to make things easier for him. She tells him that even if there's not long left in this lifetime, she'll marry him again in another. He doesn't know that it's true but, he promises her the same and that no matter what, he'll take care of their girls.

Trix and Pel, 16 and 13 respectively, have their own ways of dealing. Trix throws herself into her studies, that little Ravenclaw, and swears to become a cancer researcher. Luna tells her not to give up on her dream of being a pioneer in clean energy. Pel on the other hand, gets more attached. After her initial outburst, she started clinging to Luna as much as possible. Going on errands, loading the dishwasher; any moment she could spend with her mother she would.

Oh Pel, her loving little Hufflepuff.

She had no doubt that her family would be able to take care of each other. Plus, she was leaving them with Harry.

"I hate watching you get sick." Harry is visiting her while her kids are in school. He's brought a bouquet of bright, cheery flowers, to replace the ones from last week.

"Hmm? Does this happen often?"

Harry shakes his head. "No. It's only happened once before but, it's slow. It's hard, even though I know I'll see you again, watching you waste away."

Luna takes his hand. "I don't see it that way. This way, I get to make all my good-byes and be sure that everyone will get on without me. Besides, they'll have you. And I'll haunt your ass if you let anything happen to them."

"Haunt me? Luna, we both know that's not how death works. Well, at least for us." He chuckles.

"Tormenting you in our next life counts as haunting." She says it like it's official doctrine and Harry chuckles some more and gives a nod of agreement.

"I see. Considering we have a long time after this, I better get it right, huh?"

"Damn straight."

Luna passes away at the age of 42, leaving behind loved ones she knows will take care of each other. She'll miss this life. More than any other, she suspects. She'll have Harry in every life and Rolf in several others, but there will only ever be one Trix and one Pel.

* * *

 _This chapter has been changed and reposted. I was working out some issues before and the fact is, I want this story to remain light hearted, even though it deals with death._


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